KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco sustained a fractured fibula in his right ankle in the team’s 26-25 win over the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday and is expected to miss significant playing time for the defending champions, according to head coach Andy Reid.
“I don’t have the timeframe on Pacheco, but I know it won’t be this week and it’ll probably be more than that, obviously but it’s going to take a little bit of time there,” Reid said during his Monday press conference with reporters.
X-rays revealed the fracture Sunday after the game. Pacheo will undergo an MRI on Monday to determine if there is any additional damage and if he will require surgery. Almost two-thirds of fibula fractures in the NFL require surgery. While the Chiefs haven’t set a timeline for Pacheco’s return, the best scenario would be a six-to-eight-week absence although 12 weeks is common. The timeline would likely be longer if Pacheco requires surgery.
Pacheco left the stadium using crutches with a walking boot on his right foot. Many teammates and coaches approached an emotional Pacheco in the locker room offering him support, including head coach Andy Reid who spoke to Pacheco before heading to his postgame press conference.
The injury occurred on the first play of the team’s final possession. Pacheco ran up the middle for a 1-yard gain and one Cincinnati defender attempted to make a shoestring tackle. Subsequently, two defenders hit Pacheco high, causing him to roll his right ankle over resulting in the fracture.
As far as moving forward without Pacheco, Reid said the club will “go with the guys that we have here now.”
Rookie Carson Steele took over for Pacheco in the backfield after his injury and is the expected starter in his absence. Steele played 14 snaps Sunday with seven carries for 24 yards and a fumble. On Aug. 30 the team signed free agent Samaje Perine, who played nine snaps against the Bengals and caught one pass for 3 yards.
The Chiefs also have Clyde Edwards-Helaire on the non-football illness list. Edwards-Helaire must miss the first four games of the season but it is not clear when he will be designated to return. The club also has Keontay Ingram and Emani Bailey signed to the practice squad.
Of the four healthy running backs on the active roster and practice squad, only Steele (19) and Perine (17) have snaps during the regular season with the club in their careers.
“I would tell you I have confidence in them, I just haven’t experienced it with them,” Reid said.
Another option the Chiefs will consider is Kareem Hunt, whom the Chiefs drafted in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft. The club released Hunt in November 2018 after a video became public showing Hunt’s altercation with a woman in a Cleveland hotel contradicted the version of events he told the club. The NFL placed Hunt on the commissioner’s exempt list, and the club released Hunt later that day. Hunt played 27 games for the Chiefs in parts of two seasons, rushing for 2,151 yards and 15 touchdowns. He spent the past the five seasons with Cleveland, playing 64 games with 2,285 yards rushing and 25 touchdowns. Hunt also has 226 catches for 1,890 yards and 17 scores in his career.
Former Chiefs running back Deneric Prince is signed to the Miami Dolphins practice squad. The club can poach a player from another team’s practice squad by offering them on a contract on the 53-player active roster.
Pacheco leads the Chiefs in rushing with 135 yards on 34 carries for a 4.0 average. He has rushed for a touchdown and added seven catches for 54 yards. He also leads the club with nine first downs and 189 yards from scrimmage.
Since entering the league as a seventh-round draft pick in 2022, Pacheco has rushed for 1,900 yards and 13 touchdowns with 4.6 yards per carry. He’s also caught 64 passes for 428 yards and two scores. His 2,328 yards from scrimmage are second only to Travis Kelce (2,367) since 2022, and during that time he leads the club with 2,922 all-purpose yards including 597 return yards.
